Her Eyes
by BananaBread4
Summary: Happy-go-lucky Stella saves Charon from Azrukhal not realizing how much trouble he was going to cause her,
1. Chapter 1

"Well, that was fun! Wasn't it, Dogmeat?" I giggled, panting slightly. Dogmeat growled in response. "Hmph. Well _I_ certainly had fun." I muttered, bringing my Pip-Boy up to my face. "The Museum of History, huh? I think Gob said something about this place being a city of ghouls one time. It doesn't seem very populated here."

I walked around the two half circle tables and through a doorway, which revealed a big atrium and another doorway to "Underworld". "Oh yeah! This is the place. He said it was in Underworld in The Museum of History. Maybe they'll have ammo for Carla here." I said, walking along to the doors of Underworld.

As soon as I opened the doors, all heads turned to look at me. The place was definitely a city of ghouls. "Hey there, Smoothskin." Someone said to the left of me. I turned to see a ghoul dressed in a RobCo suit.

"Uh, hi." I said awkwardly. Dogmeat growled. "No. Bad dog." I scolded, flicking him on the nose. "Could you, uh, direct me to where I could get a room for the night?" I asked. I felt very out of place here and all the ghouls glaring at me didn't help.

"Yeah, up the stairs on the right, first door, Carol's place." He said, pointing.

"Thank you." I said, turning the stairs.

"Hey, don't cause any trouble, Smoothskin." The ghoul in the RobCo uniform called after me.

"Yes, sir." I called back, walking up the stairs. "Are you Carol?" I asked the ghoul behind the counter at Carol's place.

"Yes, that's me." She said, looking up from her book. When she saw me her eyes widened significantly. "Oh, it's been so long since I've seen a pretty young Smoothskin such as you!" She said, making me blush.

"Thank you." I muttered, smiling at her. "Could I get a room, please?"

"Oh, of course dear! How many nights will you be staying?" She asked.

"Uhm, two I think." I said, taking off my pack to reach in for one of my drawstring bags of caps.

"That'll be 175 caps then." She said. I pushed the bag across the counter to her.

"That's exactly 175, now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to go to sleep, please." I said politely.

"Let me show you where you'll be sleeping." She offered, walking around the counter. I followed her into another room where she showed me the small room made of bathroom stall doors.

"Thank you, Carol." I said, walking into the room and locking the door. I took off my pack, boots, and weapons and set them on the floor next to my bed. I laid on the mattress and Dogmeat hopped on a second later, curling up at my feet. "Good boy." I whispered before I fell asleep

* * *

><p>"Let me back in Azrukhal! I can pay you back tomorrow!" Someone yelled, waking me up.<p>

I groaned and rolled over, checking the time on my Pip-Boy, it read 8:22 AM. "Wow, almost ten hours of sleep. Not bad." I muttered, sitting up and reaching across the bed to scratch behind Dogmeat's ears. "What do ya say we go get ourselves a drink, huh?" I asked and Dogmeat yipped in reply.

I swung my legs over the side of the bed and pulled my boots on, Dogmeat started to chew on one of the laces but I flicked him on the nose and he stopped. I holstered my Assault rifle on my back, put my SMG in my left thigh holster, and my Silenced 10 mm pistol in my right thigh holster; I normally wouldn't take them with me, but it didn't seem like many people liked me here, and I didn't trust anyone not to take them or mess with them.

"Ready?" I said, grabbing my pack that was filled with bags of caps, ammo, and medical supplies for Dogmeat. I unlocked the door and walked out, making my way to Carol. "Carol, do you know where can I get a drink around here?" I asked.

"Right across the hall is the Ninth Circle. I'd be careful though, Azrukhal's a slimy one." She warned.

"Okay. Thank you." I said, walking out of Carol's place and across the hall.

"Well, hello there beautiful." A ghoul sitting at one of the tables said as soon as I walked in.

"Piss off." I growled, walking right up to the bar. "One -", Dogmeat growled at me, "_Two_ whiskeys." I said to who I could only presume to be Azrukhal, pulling out a handful of caps from one of the side pockets of my pack. I slid the caps across the counter as he slid two bottles of whiskey across.

I took a sip of the whiskey and was surprised it wasn't the watered down shit you would get at any other bar in the wasteland. "Do you have a bowl I could use?" I asked.

Azrukhal just gave me funny look before bending down and getting something from one of the counter's cabinets as I continued to drink. When he reappeared he handed me a heavily chipped bowl. I poured a quarter of the second bottle of whiskey into the bowl and leaned down to put it on the floor. As soon as it touched the ground, Dogmeat began lapping it up.

"I must say, I am impressed by the quality of your alcohol." I said, deciding not to sit down. My legs needed to stand after sleeping.

"I serve only the best at my establishment." He said. "I am Azrukhal, by the way."

"I know. Carol told me. You can call me Stella." I introduced. I looked down at the counter and saw my reflection; I looked like hell. My normally white-blonde hair was streaked with red and brown, my face was covered in dirt and grime, I had a long, jagged scar running from above my eye to a little more than halfway down my cheek from a very unlucky run in with a Deathclaw, and my normally bright green eyes had dulled significantly.

After talking to Azrukhal for a little bit, the ghoul from earlier came over and put his hands on my waist. _"Don't touch me." _ I growled, enunciating every word. Dogmeat growled, but didn't do anything otherwise. He wouldn't hurt anyone unless I told him to.

"What's wrong, girlie? Ain't you ever had a ghoul before?" He asked.

"_Fuck you. Let. Me. Go."_ I said threateningly. I didn't do anything because I didn't know if the people here would kick me out for hurting one of their community and I needed a place to stay tonight.

"I believe the lady said not to touch her." A deep, scratchy voice said from behind me.

"This doesn't concern you." The ghoul said, clutching my hips harder.

"_Let me go, asswipe!" _I hissed.

"Get rid of him, Charon." Azrukhal ordered. As soon as he said those words, the ghoul's hands left my waist and he booked it outta the bar faster than a sinner in church.

"Thank you." I said, turning around in to see the person that made the asshole leave. I came face-to-chest with the biggest ghoul I had ever seen. My eyes trailed up to his and he nodded to me, walking to a corner of the bar. I turned back to Azrukhal. "Who's he?" I asked.

"That would be Charon, my loyal employee." He said.

"Cut the bullshit I know you own him." I growled.

"My dear, own is such a terrible word…I prefer the term employ. May I enquire as to how you knew though?" He asked.

"No. You may not." I said, angrily. "How much do you want for his contract?"

"Much more than you've got, I can assure you of that." He said.

"I doubt it." I countered.

Azrukhal narrowed his eyes at me. "4,000 caps." He said.

"Done!" I yelled before he could change his mind.

"Really?" His eyes widened.

"Yes. Now hand it over." I demanded.

"Show me the caps first."

I rolled my eyes as I picked up my pack from the ground. I pulled out two lunchboxes and put them on the counter. "Each one has 2,000 caps. The contract. Now." I demanded again. Azrukhal walked over to his wall safe and spun in the combination.

"Here." He said, handing over the contract.

"Fantastic." I grinned. I picked up my pack and walked to the corner Charon was at. Charon spoke before I could say anything.

"I heard everything. Excuse me for a moment." He walked over to Azrukhal and the talked for a moment before Charon pulled out his shotgun and shot Azrukhal in the face. An eyeball landed by my feet.

"Fabulous." I muttered. I walked back over to the counter and grabbed my two lunchboxes; stuffing them into my pack again before turning to Charon. "We're about to head out, is there anything you need? Ammo, guns, medical supplies? I only have enough medical supplies for Dogmeat, so if you need some, let me know." I said.

He didn't say anything, so I guessed that meant he didn't need anything. "Not much of a talker, alright, that's okay." I said, walking out of the bar. "To the Museum of Technology we go!"

* * *

><p><strong>So, I hope you liked it! I know my summary sucked, but oh well, I may change it! Let me know what you think please!<strong>


	2. Chapter 2

"I _told_ you I only had enough medical supplies for Dogmeat. I _asked _you if you needed anything and you didn't reply. You need to _tell _me if you need anything, alright?" I was speaking to Charon while looking through a supply closet for anything I could use to fix the hole in Charon's arm from being shot by a Super Mutant.

"Yes, Mistress." He replied.

"Don't call me that. My name is Stella." I said, rolling my eyes. "Aha! Found one!" I held up a Stimpak triumphantly, grinning happily. "Think fast!" I said quickly, tossing the Stimpak to Charon; he caught it effortlessly. "Not bad. Now let's get going; I need to find that dish." I said as Charon injected himself with the Stimpak.

We walked out of the closet and towards the next exhibit quietly. "A vault exhibit? How cliché." I muttered, making my way through the rubble. "I used to live in a vault, ya know?" I told Charon. "I had to leave though, cause my dad left and the Overseer went psycho. I'm glad I left though; if I hadn't, I wouldn't've met my boy." I said, scratching behind Dogmeat's ears.

I looked over at Charon expectantly, but he kept looking ahead, not saying a word. "Still not talking, huh?" I sighed. "That's okay. You don't have to talk." We continued on in silence until we exited the vault exhibit and entered the West Wing.

"Need more humans." A Super Mutant said, making me freeze in my tracks. I put a finger on my lips and crept forward slowly. When I reached the double doors I lifted my head to where I could just see inside the room and counted how many mutants there were.

I lifted three fingers and Charon nodded at me. I got my Assault Rifle ready and busted in through the doors, already shooting the Super Mutant closest to me. To my left Dogmeat was tearing his teeth into one of the Super Mutant's flesh, and above me Charon was shooting round after round into a Super Mutant's skull.

Within minutes the Super Mutant I was shooting was dead and I went to help Dogmeat, shooting three bullets into the Mutant's skull before he fell over dead. "Need any help up there?" I called to Charon.

"No, Mistress." Was his short reply and no sooner had he said it then I heard the Mutant drop to the ground. As Charon was walking down to us, I surveyed Dogmeat for any injuries but didn't find any too serious.

"Good boy!" I praised, pulling out a piece of mole rat jerky from my pocket and throwing it to him. "Are you hurt?" I asked Charon, looking him over.

"No, Mistress." He said again.

"Are you sure? Because you said that last time and you ended up having a bullet in your arm." I said skeptically.

"Yes, I'm sure, Mistress." He answered.

"Really? _Really?_ My name is _Stella_. Say it with me now,_ Stelllaaa._" I said, saying my name slowly. Charon didn't say anything; he just started walking down the stairs. "Yep, fuck you too." I said under my breath before following him down the stairs.

Upon reaching the bottom of the stairs, I stupidly started to run towards the next room because I knew that was where to Lunar Lander would be. I didn't, even for a second, stop to think, _Hey! Maybe I shouldn't run right into this room because there could be a Super Mutant in there!_ Charon, thankfully, did though and, before I could do something stupid like that, he grabbed my upper arm.

"What? What is it?" I asked. He let go of my arm and put a finger on his lips then tapped his ear. Well, not his ear really, but where his ear should be if he had one. I quieted down and listened; after a minute I heard a Super Mutant say,

"Puny human! I know you're here! Come out!"

"Oh." I mouthed. Charon and I both crept forward being as quiet as possible. When I thought the Super Mutant was close enough, I whispered, "Now!"

At the same time, Charon and I showered the Super Mutant in bullets before he could react; he was down in less than a minute. "Fantastic!" I grinned, holding my hand up for a high five. Instead of high fiving me, Charon continued on into the room with the Lunar Lander. "Fine. I can be my own friend!" I called after him, then I clapped my hands together once so it was like I high fived myself.

If dogs could laugh, I think Dogmeat was doing it. "Shut up." I muttered. I walked into the next room and put my Assault rifle and pack on the ground next to the Lunar Lander. "Well, this shouldn't be too hard!" I said, bending down to get out a couple tools from my pack before starting to climb the Lander. "Be ready to take this from me as soon as I get it off." I told Charon.

"Yes, Mistress." Charon said.

"_Stella!_" I called down, beginning to fiddle with the dish. "Ya know, Mistress sounds pretty kinky. Even Butch never called me that, and let me tell you, he was one horny as- _fuck!"_ I yelped, clutching my palm. Blood started seeping through my fingers after a few seconds. "Could you hand me a rag, Charon?"

"Of course, Mistress." Charon said, getting out a rag and handing it to me.

"Thanks." I muttered, wiping the blood on my hands onto the rag. After that I didn't talk anymore, focusing my attention completely on the dish so as not to hurt myself again. "Here, Charon." I said, giving Charon the dish to hold. After I was sure Charon had a hold of the dish, I let it go and climbed back down from the Lunar Lander.

"Is your hand okay, Mistress?" Charon asked.

"You spoke of your own accord? What sorcery is this?" I said dramatically and Charon gave me a funny look. "Right, sorry. Ya, it's fine. See?" I said, holding up my palm which was completely clear of any scar or damage.

"I know, insane. A few days after I got this," I pointed to the scar on my face, "this crazy scientist found me and offered me ten thousand caps to allow him to experiment on me. Now, this was about two weeks after I came out of the vault and I was a naïve little fuck so I said yes. He did some tests and messed with my genes and this was the end result. I'm more or less invincible. I can't age or die and my body heals itself when I'm hurt." I explained. "This is why I only carry enough medical supplies for Dogmeat and I asked you if you needed anything."

Charon just nodded his head, silent as ever.

"Seriously? Even that doesn't warrant a response?" I asked, slightly ticked off.

"Maybe when you get your head out of your ass and quit talking about yourself I'll talk to you." Charon snapped.

"Guess you'll never talk to me then; my ego's bigger than you." I grinned. "Now that I know you can say more than 'No, Mistress' or 'Yes, Mistress' I expect you to talk more often. Maybe you shoulda kept your mouth shut."

I holstered my Assault rifle on my back and put my pack on so that it was hanging from one shoulder. "You got that dish okay?" I asked.

"Yes, Mistress." He replied.

"Fuck you." I muttered, starting to retrace my steps.

* * *

><p>"This was my <em>favorite shirt<em>!" I yelled to the Super Mutant that had just shot me through the stomach. We were attempting to get across the Mall to the Washington Monument, but it was proving to be increasingly difficult with the dish strapped to Charon's back.

I unloaded a whole magazine into the Mutant's head even though it was dead long before the magazine was out. "Now it has blood on it and a hole in it!"

"Might I suggest that we get a move on, Mistress?" Charon said from behind me.

"But, _my shirt_." I whined.

"_We need to leave_." Charon hissed.

"Oh. Right. Mall. Full of Super Mutants." I stated, then looked around, only to see that the mall was empty. "Hey, I think we got 'em all!"

Charon looked around and nodded his head.

"We can loot them later; I gotta get this dish installed before it gets dark." I said, starting to walk to the Washington Monument.

"State your business here." The idiot in power armor ordered.

"I need to install this dish up there for Three Dog." I replied, hooking my thumb over my shoulder to Charon.

"He can't go up there." The idiot said.

"Really? Does Sarah know about this?" I asked, irritation slipping into my tone.

"Yes, she does." He said.

"Oh? Does she also know you dumbasses are out here wasting ammo by taking pot-shots at the ghouls here?" I countered.

He didn't say anything.

"I thought not. Now he comes up there with me, or Sarah finds that out." I said innocently.

"Fine. He can go up with you." He said reluctantly.

"Fantastic!" I said, clapping my hands.

The idiot in power armor walked over to terminal and unlocked the doors for us. "Thanks!" I sang, walking through the doors, Charon and Dogmeat close behind.

"Who's super awesome?" I said immaturely. "I am!"

Dogmeat barked happily and Charon just stayed quiet.

"You really can talk, ya know." I said, walking into the elevator. "I won't be mad at you for having an opinion. I don't know what your past employers told you, but I don't mind if you talk. I like having someone around that can reply to me. I've been talking to this dog for far too long. I swear, sometimes I can hear him talk back."

Charon still didn't reply. I sighed, giving up for now, and we continued the elevator ride in silence. When the doors opened we walked onto the monument and I gasped. "The view is beautiful." I stared out at the Wasteland for a few more minutes then turned to Charon and asked for the dish, he handed it to me without a word.

I got some tools from out of my pack and went right to work on installing the dish. It took me about three hours to get it right, so it was 5 o' clock by the time I finished.

"Well that was tedious." I said, wiping the back of my hand across my forehead to rid it of sweat. "Hey, Charon."

"Yes, Mistress?" Charon replied with his usual response.

"What do you call an alligator in a vest?" I asked, smiling.

"What, Mistress?" He sighed.

"An investigator!" I got out before being overtaken by giggles.

"Mistress?" Charon said, not finding the joke as funny as I did.

"Ya?" I asked.

"That was a terrible joke." He stated.

"I know." I replied. "But they're my favorite kind!"

"Really?" He asked, raising a brow muscle.

"No, I only said that because it wasn't true." I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm as I put my tools away.

"Why did the cook get arrested?" Charon asked a couple minutes later.

"Why?" I asked, happy that he was talking to me.

"Because he beat up an egg." He said, making me snort with laughter.

For the next hour we cracked jokes nonstop until I couldn't stay up any longer.

"I need to sleep." I yawned, looking down at my Pip-Boy; it was only 6:30, but I was about ready to pass out. "We can sleep up here tonight, I'm way too lazy to walk back to the museum and I doubt you'd want to stay there another night." I said, lying down on the mattress. "You should go to sleep soon too, we start walking back to GNR tomorrow and I don't want to stop until we have to; I have information to get."

"Yes, Mistress." Charon replied.

"_Stella_." I said one last time before falling asleep.

* * *

><p><strong>First things first, I'd like to thank Keyz for the review, it really helped. I tried to make this chapter less robotic and I hope I succeeded.<strong>

**Second** **of all, I really do love lame jokes, so if you've got any, do tell!**

**And finally, hope you enjoyed the chapter and have a great da**y!


	3. Chapter 3

_**Everybody's waiting  
>Everybody's watching<br>Even when you're sleeping  
>Keep your eyes open<strong>_

"Why didn't the skeleton go to the party?" I asked Charon as we walked through the metro tunnels. We had been going through the tunnels nonstop since yesterday, and we would be arriving at GNR sometime tomorrow.

"Why, Mistress?" Charon sighed; this was probably the fifteenth joke I had asked him this hour.

"He had no body to go with him!" I giggled.

"Yes, very funny, Mistress." Charon said with no amusement in his tone.

"Aw, you're no fun, Charry." I whined. "That joke was funny."

"Charry?" Charon asked.

"Ya, Charry, ya know, like the wine, Sherry. Do I still have a bottle of that at home…? I think I do." I muttered, bending down to pick up a magazine off the ground. "I figured that if I gave you a nickname, then you would call me Stella instead of Mistress."

"If you wish to call me that, then I do not mind, Mistress." Charon said, although I could detect a hint of agitation.

"Oh my _God_! Charry! Do you realize what this is?" I yelled, waving the magazine in Charon's face. "This is issue _seventy-nine_ of Grognak the Barbarian! _The last one ever printed_! Do you have any idea how rare this is? I've been looking for this issue for _forever_! It's the only –"

"Hush!" Charon ordered.

"What is it? Did you hear something?" I whispered.

"No. I just wanted you to stop talking." Charon said, continuing to walk.

"Fuck you." I mumbled, following after him.

* * *

><p>"Do you even know where you're going?" I asked after an hour of walking through the Metro Station in silence.<p>

"Yes, Mistress." Charon answered.

"I don't believe you." I said, scratching Dogmeat's head. "Would you _please_ call me Stella?" I begged.

"If you order it, then yes I will." Charon said.

"But I don't _want _to order you to. I don't want to order you to do anything; you're not a dog." I explained; Dogmeat barked at me. "No, baby, you're not a dog either."

"Then why'd you buy my contract?" Charon asked.

"I dunno. I wanted company I guess." I shrugged. "You looked like you could use a friend too."

Charon didn't reply and I pulled the Grognak the Barbarian magazine from my back pocket, reading it as I walked.

"Did you hear that?" Charon whispered.

"Hear what?" I asked, not looking up from my magazine. "Shit!" I cursed, running into Charon's back.

"Quiet!" Charon hissed.

"Is this another ploy to get me to shut up?" I asked. "If it is –"

I was cut off by Charon slapping his hand on my mouth. We kept quiet for a few minutes, then Charon took his hand off my mouth. "It's just a Radroach." He said.

"Rah- rah- Radroach?" I stuttered.

"Yes, Mi-"

I let out a glass breaking scream and ran to the nearest pile of rubble, climbing on top of it in record speed. "_Kill it! Kill it now!" _I screamed.

I heard one gunshot, then Charon said,

"It's dead, Mistress."

"Ah, good, thank you, Charry." I said, my voice shaking a little.

"You're afraid of Radroaches?" Charon asked after ten minutes or so, amusement in his tone.

"Ya; so fuckin' what? They're nasty." I growled.

"Never had an employer that was afraid of bugs before." He said.

"Fuck you. Bugs shouldn't be that big. Are we almost done in here? It's so dank in these tunnels." I whined.

"Sorry, _your highness_, but it wont be anytime soon." He answered.

"Fabulous!" I cheered sarcastically, running a hand through my tangled hair. "Hey, Charry, guess what! I took down a Super Mutant Behemoth once. It was so intense! He was so _big_. And gross. And his backpack thingy – _it was a shopping cart_! Can you ima-"

"If I promise to call you Stella from now on, _will you shut up?_" Charon growled.

"Yes!" I agreed, beaming at him.

"Then shut up, Stella." He ordered.

"Yessir!" I said, saluting him. I looked down at Dogmeat and gave him an accomplished grin.

* * *

><p>"We should stop here for the night." Charon said, stopping in front of me again.<p>

"Jesus. Would you warn me next time you're gonna do that? You're a big guy and_ it fuckin' hurts._" I growled.

"I thought you couldn't get hurt." Charon stated, leaning against a ticket center in the Metro Tunnel.

"No, no, no. My body can heal wounds but that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt like a bitch when I get 'em. I feel pain just like you and everybody else."

Charon made some sort of grunt which I made out to mean, "Okay."

"Hey, Charon?" I asked as I pulled out a box of Sugar Bombs.

"Yes, Stella?" He replied and I did an internal cheer at him calling me by my name.

"Are you named after Charon from Greek mythology? He's the ferryman of Hades who carries souls of the newly deceased across the rivers Styx and Acheron that divided the world of the living from the world of the dead." I asked, remembering what Mr. Brotch once taught us in class.

"I don't remember. Although I do suppose it fits." He muttered.

"I always loved Greek Mythology." I murmured.

_**The tricky thing  
>Is yesterday we were just children<br>Playing soldiers  
>Just pretending<br>Dreaming dreams with happy endings  
>In backyards, winning battles with our wooden swords<br>**_

"_I want to be Hades, Butch!" I whined, glaring at my best friend._

"_You can't be Hades! You're a girl!" Butch argued._

"_So what? Hades is the best God and I want to be him." I yelled, stomping my foot._

"_Fine. You can be Hades. Happy now?" Butch sighed._

"_Yes!" I said, my mood instantly changing. "Thank you Butch!" I ran over and hugged him tightly._

"_Ya, ya. Now lemme go!" He ordered._

"_Haha, okay. Who are you gonna be?" I asked._

"_I'll be Zeus." He said, picking up his wooden sword._

"_Hey, Butch. If we're Gods, how come we have swords?" I asked, picking up my sword as well. _

"_Because we're _Pirate_ Gods. Duh." He said as if it were obvious._

"_I knew that…" I muttered._

"_Sure you did. You ready yet?" He asked._

"_Ya, I'm ready." I said. And so, for the next few hours Butch and I were Pirate Gods, and everyone that walked by knew not what was going on as we spewed nonsense words and things about Gods that we had learned in class that day._

_**But now we've stepped into a cruel world  
>Where everybody stands and keeps score<strong>_

* * *

><p><strong>Hey guys! Sorry I took so long to update. School is incredibly busy – especially since it's fourth quarter. I'll hopefully update the next chapter quicker. Well, anyways, hope you enjoyed the chapter and have a nice day!<strong>

**Oh ya, PS to Keyz - I just read your last chapter and it as well mentioned Charon being named after Charon of the River Styx, I just wanted you to know that I didn't copy you! I had this written out before you uploaded and when I read your last chapter I was all *facepalm* _she's gonna think I copied her_. I just wanted to let you know that this was not the case! **

**Okay. Bye for real now!**


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